


Shallow

by Sourwolf_sterek32



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Jeffrey is an actor, Protective Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Reader Insert, reader is a singer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-02 13:50:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19200145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sourwolf_sterek32/pseuds/Sourwolf_sterek32
Summary: The reader sings at a bar in front of the same people every week, until a new guy shows up and seems to take a interest in you.





	Shallow

**Author's Note:**

> Based from the prompt: ‘I hate love songs, but I love you.’ which then reminded me of the movie A Star is Born so it’s kinda inspired by a few scenes in that as well.

"Y/N, you ready?" Caleb the DJ asked, sticking his head out from around the curtain that lead to the small stage and you nodded. You worked at the local bar for two hours every Friday night, singing on stage. You had another job during the week since your single gig doesn't exactly pay the bills.

"Ready when you are." You replied, watching as the DJ disappeared before you turned back towards the mirror and pulled your red glittery phantom mask on. The mask covered majority of the right side of your face and you hated wearing the mask, but your boss had given you strict instructions to always wear it along with your very revealing red dress.

You grabbed the red rose from the desk in front of the mirror, the thorns already cut off as you tucked it behind your left ear letting your Y/H/L Y/H/C hair fall behind it. You took taking one last look at yourself in the mirror, satisfied despite hating the stupid dress and mask your boss made you wear.

"Are you guys ready? Let's do it! You all know her very well by now, give it up for Rose!" Caleb called out over his microphone and you heard a few people cheer in the background, but you knew most of them were too busy in their own conversations or drinks to even notice the live music going on behind them.

Picking up the cordless microphone you turned it on and stood in front of the curtains, closing your eyes as you took a deep breath trying to settle your nerves. You've been singing at this bar for over a year now, yet you still got nervous before every gig.

Despite how nervous you always were before performing, the second you stepped through the curtains and started singing your nerves just disappear and you'd get lost in your music.

"This is a little song called 'Maybe It's Time' I hope you guys enjoy." You said through the microphone, walking through the curtains spotting all the people sitting at various tables and along the bar. Most of them locals, but there were a few new faces who must be passing through town.

A few of the locals cheered and raised their drinks in your direction as you walked to the side of the stage where your guitar was leaning against a tall stool. You clipped your microphone onto the stand in front of your stool before sitting down. You glanced over at Caleb who was sitting at the other side of the stage behind his DJ equipment and gave him a nod.

Within a second he started the background music as you joined in with the guitar before you started singing. It didn't take long before you got lost in the music, your eyes scanning the room curiously as you sung and you couldn't stop the smile forming on your lips when you spotted a man watching you.

Everyone was sort of dancing or listening to your voice while they enjoyed their drinks, but this one guy seemed to be really intrigued with you.

The man was sitting with two other guys, but seemed to completely ignore whatever they were talking about as he watched you sing. He had dark hair and with salt and pepper stubble over his jaw that for some reason just suited him really perfect especially with the leather jacket.

As the night went on you continued singing various songs that your boss had told you to sing, but you kept your eye on the mysterious man who in return had kept looking at you.

-

After your gig was over you made you way over to the bar and ordered a glass of Pepsi as you sat down. Usually you had a few drinks on a Friday night, but you had to drive home soon since you had morning shift at work tomorrow.

"Rose! Come and dance with us." A voice shouted from the dance floor and you glanced over your shoulder to find Claire and a few others who you knew were regulars at the bar all waving at you to join them, but you shook your head.

"If you want me to dance then I need something a little stronger than a Pepsi." You called back trying not to laugh as Claire nearly fell over while dancing with the others.

"Rose pleaseeeeee." One of the others shouted over the music but you shook your head. Taking a sip of your non-alcoholic drink, you watched them make fools of themselves. Maybe it's a good thing you needed to drive home because they were embarrassing themselves out there and you had already been centre of attention while singing, that was more than enough for one day.

"Here you go ma'ma." The bartenders voice said catching your attention. You turned around in confusion at the woman not remembering that you ordered another drink, especially not some alcoholic cocktail.

"I'm sorry but I didn't order this." You responded and the bartender smiled shaking her head.

"I know, he ordered it for you." The bartender answered nodding to your left, you followed her eyes to find a man walking towards you.. You instantly recognised him as one of the men from the couches who had been watching you earlier while on stage. You shook your head knowing it wasn't the time to start fantasising about a freakishly hot random stranger. Get it together Y/N.

"Thanks but I don't need anyone buying me drinks, you can take it back." You responded sliding the glass away from you. It was a nice gesture but you don't want to owe anyone anything.

"Alright, that's fair enough. I'm sorry to bother you." The man said with an apologetic smile and you stared at him in confusion. Guys who try buy girls drink are always persistent because they want something in return which you weren't interested in, but why isn't he?

"Wait." You suddenly said standing up from the bar stool watching as the man stopped walking and turned around to face you. "That was really rude of me, I'm sorry. It's just I have to drive home, I can't drink and I'm not use to people buying me drinks, sorry."

The man laughed softly and nodded. "Apology accepted. Mind if I sit?" He asked and you smiled motioning towards the seat next to you as you both took a seat.

"You look familiar, what's your name?" You asked curiously taking a drink of your Pepsi and the man smiled. You swore you have seen him before but you couldn't workout where from. You deal with hundreds of people weekly with your jobs so it's quite possible you've seen him at the bar before.

"I'm Jeffrey and I don't think we've met, I definitely would've remembered you if we did. You're name's not really Rose is it?" Jeffrey asked and you couldn't help but chuckle shaking your head.

"No, it's a stage name, so creeps don't stalk me." You answered honestly, placing your glass back down as you adjusted the mask on the left side of your face.

"Do you think I'm one of them?" Jeffrey questioned glanced over at you with a small smile but you just your shoulders.

"I haven't figured it out yet." You replied. "But it's nice to meet you Jeffrey. Those your friends?" You asked motioning over your shoulder towards the two guys on one of the couches who you knew kept looking at the two of you.

"Yeah sorry, they keep staring at us." Jeffrey said with a nervous laugh as he glared at his friends across the room. "They're the ones who actually gave me the courage to come talk to you."

"Maybe you should have led with the talking part instead of trying to woo me over a drink." You replied with a grin and Jeffrey shook his head in embarrassment.

"I wasn't-" Jeffrey tried to say but you cut him off.

"Relax I'm messing with you. Most girls love that kind of stuff." You reassured him as you fiddled with the glass in front of you. A lot of girls love it when guys buy them stuff and do everything for them and sometimes you liked that, but you preferred doing stuff yourself and not having to rely on anyone.

"And you aren't like most girls." Jeffrey said and you shrugged your shoulders.

"Is that a bad thing?" You asked and Jeffrey quickly shook his head with a smile.

"It's far from a bad thing. I like how you're different." He replied before turning to the bartender and ordering himself a drink. "Are you going to take that mask off? You were wearing it on stage too."

You shook your head, glancing over at him. "I can't. Boss doesn't let me take it off while I'm around here." You answered bitterly, glancing around to make sure your boss wasn't within earshot, although it was too late if he was.

"I'm getting the feeling that you don't like your boss." He observed and you chuckled with nod. Damn, was it that obvious?

"We used to date, didn't end well... but he let me keep my job, so I'll deal with his bullshit rules." You responded causing Jefferey to smile. "What are you smiling about?"

"So, your single?" He asked with a hint of hope in his voice and you rolled your eyes. For a second you thought about lying and saying you had a boyfriend, but he seemed like a nice guy and you had to be blind if you didn't find him attractive and those two combinations were hard to come by so why the hell not.

The two of you talk for the next half an hour about literally everything. You found out that he had a small hobby farm and loved animals, but not nearly as much as he loved motorcycles, whether it was dirt bikes or road bikes, he loved them. His favourites were apparently Harley Davidson and even though you weren't a motorcycle expert, you had to admit Harleys made some pretty sweet rides.

Jeffrey asked about your singing, asking whether you sung here every night. But you just told him on Fridays and occasionally Saturday nights, but that you had another part time job because it didn't pay much.

"Hey Rose, come and sing with us!" Claire shouted and you turned around to find her and the others now on the stage. Although the others continued to dance to the music with drinks in their hands.

"Sing without me." You yelled back shaking your head before turning back to Jeffrey who was smiling with amusement.

"And those are your friends I'm guessing." He commented glancing towards the small group who began to sing along with the song but were surprising decent singers half drunk.

"Kinda, they're just regulars at the bar who know me fairly well." You replied shaking your head.

"I know what you said earlier, so can I buy you a Pepsi or whatever non-alcoholic drink you feel like?" Jeffrey asked with a sweet smile but you shook your head.

"I only let guys buy me a drink on a date." You replied shrugging your shoulders and Jeffrey's smile grew wider.

"Well, how about I take you on a date and then I will buy you a drink?" He asked leaning closer and you nodded.

"I like the sound of that, but how about you and I go out for some ice cream and see if we still want to see each other again after 20 minutes?" You asked, catching Jeffery by surprise as he stared at you as if trying to decipher whether you were joking or not causing you to smile. "C'mon, there's a 7/11 a few blocks down and they have a soft serve machine." You declared, standing up from your bar stool as you drank the last of your drink and Jeffery did the same. He began to follow you out the bar, but stopped for a few seconds to tell his friends that'll be back soon and they all gave him the thumbs up with knowing smirk causing you to roll your eyes. They had no idea that you two were just going to get ice cream, let them think what they wanted.

The two of you walked down the quiet night street, Jefferey shrugging off his leather jacket and gave it which you took gladly. You had taken your mask off and left it behind the bar before you left so you didn't lose it because then your boss might actually fire you.

It was probably past midnight by now so there weren't many people out and about as you stood side by side talking about random topics like how he had a pet donkey and emu called Jack and Diane. You always liked animals and it was nice listening to him talk about his pets and the animals he wants in the future. All you had was a goldfish because a container of goldfish flakes only cost 5 dollars and lasts for months compared to buying cans of dog or cat food every week, but you'd love to have more pets.

Once you entered the store the two of you greeted the young lady behind the cash register before Jeffery ordered the two ice creams. He completely ignoring your attempts to pay for your own dessert and already scanned his credit card before you pull yours out.

The two of you walked back out the shop and sat down on the curb and began eating your ice creams. Jeffery asked you more about yourself and you told him about your family and where you went to school and all the basic stuff before he asked what hobbies beside singing that you enjoy.

"I'm a pretty boring person." You replied, but Jeffery just raised his eyebrows at you to say that he didn't believe you and you sighed trying to think. "I write songs sometimes."

"The ones you sing?" He asked, but you shook your head as you finished your ice cream

"No, the boss only lets me sing certain songs. Won't let me sing my own writing." You answered, but that was probably one rule you didn't mind following because you weren't that good at song writing.

"Let me hear one." Jefferey said, glancing over at you from where you sat beside him on the curb of the road, his hazel eyes locking with yours and you shook your head. "Come on, I'd love to hear one. Please." He begged and you stared at him for a few seconds before you sighed with a nod.

_"Tell me something boy_  
_aren't you tired trying to fill that void_  
_or do you need more?_  
_Ain't it hard keeping it so hardcore..."_ You sang softly, staring out at the bitumen road in front of you.

"You have such a lovely voice, keep going, if you want." Jeffery said, running his fingers through his hair and you knew he was looking at you out the corner of your eye.

_"And in all the good times I find myself_  
_Longing for change-"_ You sang, but stopped as you stood up and began pacing along the side of the road. "I started writing this song a few days ago, maybe that part could work as a chorus or something. _I'm off the deep end... watch as I dive in... I'll never meet the ground... crash through the surface_ _,_ _were they_ _can't_ _hurt us... we're far from the shallow now."_ You sang as you spun around on your high heels slowly, trying to find the right words before you turned back towards Jeffery who was still sitting the curb staring at you in shock, which seemed to be a common thing with him.

"Wow. Holy shit." He responded, unable to find any other words as he looked at you proudly causing you to roll your eyes as you sat back down beside him.

"Can I tell you a secret?" He asked, his accent think as he spoke softly and you nodded, leaning closer to him. "I think you might be a songwriter." He whispered and you could feel your cheeks blushing slightly, but you couldn't stop yourself from smiling.

-

Over the next few month's Jeffery continued to come to your Friday night gigs, sometimes with his friends, but most the time by himself and the two of you would have a few drinks together before getting ice cream. It sorta became like an after-gig tradition. He also took you out on that date and you split the bill, despite him telling you that he wanted to pay, but you wouldn't have any of it.

You weren't quite sure if the two of you were dating or not, you hadn't really discussed it, but you acted like it, so you think you were... you hoped you were. He had also helped you finish the song you were writing and it turned out that he too could also sing, which was just ridiculous because no guy should be this nice and attractive and have a great voice.

After the first month he had also told you about his work and how he was an actor, which now that he told you made a lot of sense because you knew he seemed familiar. Apparently he was in the middle of filming season seven of The Walking Dead, which you had never watched before, but the two of you binged it together a few weeks ago. He wouldn't tell you which character Negan kills during the line up and said you were going to have to wait until the new season aired just like everyone else.

"Hey, Y/N, can I speak to you in private?" Caleb the DJ asked walking into the backroom while you finished taking your high heels off and putting your converse shoes on. High heels looked great, but man they were uncomfortable, full credit to women who wear them all day everyday.

"Yeah, let's go outside." You replied, glancing around the room at the few people getting changed into their work gear or on their phones while on break.

Caleb had never asked to speak to you in private before and you did not like the nervousness in his tone when he spoke. Whatever he had to say wasn't good. "What's up?" You asked once the two of you walked out the backdoor as you leant against the brick wall of the building while Caleb fiddled with his hands anxiously.

"I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but you need to know... I overheard the boss talking on the phone earlier today and he's planning on letting you go after next weeks gig." Caleb explained, looking over at your sadly and you just stared at him letting his words sink in.

"Letting me go? He's planning on firing me?" You asked, trying to think of anything you had done wrong or why he would want to fire you. Your Friday night gigs were the most popular thing at the bar, you always bought in a large crowd every week while the rest of the week have less than half the people inside, so why would he want to get rid of all those paying customers?

"Yeah, he was saying how he has another woman lined up to start as soon as you're gone, I'm sorry." He replied, shaking his head sadly. Well if it was going to be your last gig than you were going to make sure it's one hell of a show. Your boss was a dick anyway and after you broke up it was only a matter of time before he fired you and you knew he didn't like seeing you and Jeffery together after your gigs.

"No, it's not your fault don't apologise, but can you do me a favour? If I give you an audio clip can you play it Friday night instead of whatever song the boss wants me to sing? I know you might get in trouble for it-" You began to say before Caleb cut you off.

"Say no more. Whatever you're planning on doing, I'm in. The boss is an asshole, but he won't fire me, he needs me especially if he's kicking out our best singer." He said causing you to grin. You already had a plan in your mind, you just needed to talk to Jeffery to see if he could help you and to also be there next Friday to make sure you don't chicken out.

-

***Next Friday***

The boss wanted you to sing some Delta song, but you had better ideas. Caleb had the audio of you playing the piano to the tune of your new song while Jeffery recorded it, since it was at his house with his mothers old piano. Jeffery had also helped you adjust the song slightly to make it sound better. You even added in a section at the start for him to sing because holy shit Jeffery Dean Morgan had an amazing voice and could play the guitar and didn't tell you until only a few weeks ago, but that's beside the point.

"You told me to slap you if you started to chicken out and that's exactly what your doing." Jeffery commented, leaning on the back of the chair as you stared at yourself in the mirror backstage. You had your usual red mask on along with a red glittery coat on over the top of your blue flannel pattern dress so the boss would be happy for the first part of your song until you took the coat off and he realised you're not in some skin tight dress.

"Y/N, whenever you're ready." Caleb called out from somewhere behind you before he ducked through the curtain to the stage and began playing random music to entertain the crowd.

"There's so many people! I've never seen the bar this packed, it's like they all knew it was my last gig or something." You responded, hating how nervous you were as you stared at Jeffery through the large mirror.

"I may have tweeted something a couple days ago about how there was an amazing woman singing tonight and that everyone should come watch if they're in town." He admitted with a guilty expression and your jaw dropped. He did what?! Holy shit, no wonder there's so many people, how were you meant to sing in front of all of them?

"I'm not a songwriter I can't sing my own song, its not good enough." You stated, not bothering to tell him off for tweeting something because it was kinda too late to undo it.

"Y/N, I'm telling you that it is more than good enough, just trust me and get on that stage." Jeffery instructed pointing towards the curtain to the stage across the room, but you shook your head.

"I can't."

"You can. Now I'm going out there to start, come and join me because either way your boss is firing you, might as well give him something to fire you for." He responded, a hint of a smirk forming on his lips as he grabbed the guitar from the table beside him and began walking towards the curtain and you sighed. Jeffery knew exactly what to say to get through to you and you both loved but hated that about him. God damnit.

You sat there for a few seconds staring at yourself before the crowd in the bar suddenly erupted in applause. You knew Jeffrey had just walked onto the stage before Caleb began playing the piano audio you had given him as Jeffery began playing his guitar. Well it was now or never.

"My girlfriend wrote this amazing song and I really think you guys should hear it. Y/N, baby, all you gotta do is trust me, just trust me." Jeffery said through the microphone and you mentally facepalmed at him as the audience continued to cheer. You took a deep breath standing up and began walking over to the curtain, waiting for your cue as Jeffery began singing his part of the song.

_"Tell me somethin', girl_  
_Are you happy in this modern world?_  
_Or do you need more?_  
_Is there somethin' else you're searchin' for?_  
_I'm falling_  
_In all the good times I find myself_  
_Longin' for change_  
_And in the bad times I fear myself"_ Jeffery sang while he played the guitar before you walked out from behind the curtain, the crowd again erupting in cheers. You walked over to Jeffery where another microphone was set up beside him and he smiled knowing that what he said would make you come out.

_"Tell me something, boy_  
_Aren't you tired trying to fill that void?_  
_Or do you need more?_  
_Ain't it hard keeping it so hardcore?_  
_I'm falling_  
_In all the good times I find myself_  
_Longing for change_  
_And in the bad times I fear myself."_ You sang as you took a step back from the microphone as Jeffery played the guitar for a few beats before you pulled your long coat off and tossed it to the ground. You grabbed your mask next and ripped it off your face and threw it into the ground as you grabbed the microphone and took it out the holder.

_"I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in_  
_I'll never meet the ground_  
_Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us_  
_We're far from the shallow now."_ You continued to sing before you glanced over at Jeffery with a grin and he nodded, leaning closer to his microphone before you both sung the chorus together.

_"In the shallow, shallow_  
_In the shallow, shallow_  
_In the shallow, shallow_  
_We're far from the shallow now."_

The two of you continued to sing the whole song, you singing most of it while Jeffery played the guitar and was smiling proudly at you the entire time before you finished the song. The two of you bowed as the crowd erupted in applause, everyone clapping and whistling as you stared at the packed out bar in absolute shock.

You and Jeffery just sung your song together in front all of these people. You couldn't recognise most of them, but by their Walking Dead t-shirts you kinda figured they were his fans causing you to smile at how supportive they all were. You could also see most of the regular girls you were friends with all standing on top of the bar cheering with their glasses in the air. You could also spot Jeffery's friends in the front row, Norman, Andy and few others you knew were on his show, but you had never officially met them.

"Thank you all for coming out tonight, now let's make this a real party. DJ play your special playlist so everyone can dance!" You shouted, once the crowd quietened down slightly so they could actually hear you speak. You glanced over your shoulder towards Caleb who gave you the thumbs up before some Pitbull song began playing.

"Y/N!" Your bosses voice suddenly yelled above the crowd and music as you turned back around to find him climbing up from the front steps of the stage in anger. Well this was gonna be interesting.

You watched as he stormed towards you, grabbing the microphone stand and threw it to the ground in anger causing it let out a large screeching noise through the speakers. He stood in front of you, glaring down at you and Jeffery quickly took a step forward, not liking how angry and close your boss was getting.

"You're fired! Pack your shit and don't ever come back!" He yelled in your face and you glanced over at the crowd who were all watching the three of you in anticipation before your boss began to storm off.

"Gladly." You shouted back before grabbing Jeffery's hand as you walked down the steps towards the bar, everyone you walked past commenting on how amazing that song was and how great of a duo the two of you were before you reached the bar.

You leant against the bar and to your surprise the bartender had already made your favourite drink and a rum and coke for Jeffery as you both took the glasses with an appreciative nod before you turned towards each other.

"Here's to your final gig in this shitty bar." Jeffery said above the music as he held his glass up towards you and you chuckled, but nodded in agreement as you tapped his glass with yours before you both took a drink.

"Excuse me Miss?" A woman suddenly asked, taking your attention away from your drink as you turned around to find a woman in a black pantsuit standing behind you with a smile. "My name is Jamie Springton and I'm a Music Producer. I was wondering if you were interested in becoming my new client? I haven't heard a voice like yours in a long time, you got a lot of potential in both singing and song writing and I would like to help you reach that full potential. Give it a think, here's my card when you make a decision." Jamie said, handing you a small card with a friendly smile before she walked off.

You stood there holding the Music Producers card in your hand, your glass in the other as you stood there frozen to the spot in pure shock. She wanted you to be her client, she wanted to help you become more than just some woman singing at a bar once a week... holy shit.

Finally, you got your body to move as tucked it into the back of your phone case before you turned towards Jeffery who was already looking at you, grinning from ear to ear. Did he know about the Music Producer being here? Did he invite her?

"I hate love songs, but I love you." He stated, cupping your cheeks with his hands before he leant forward and placed a gentle kiss to your lips. All your questions and thoughts from before quickly disappearing as you began to kiss him back.

"I love you too, Jeffrey."

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing for JDM, I haven’t even written for one of his characters before so this was really new to me. I hope you guys enjoyed it and I would love to hear your thoughts about it below. 
> 
> The next chapter of my current Daryl Dixon series will be out within the next few days, but until then stay safe everyone and have a great day xx


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